José Fernández knows Paige Bueckers perfectly. The coach, during his time at South Florida, faced the player, a three-time All-American, several times during her outstanding career at UConn. Fernández also maintains a friendship for years with Bueckers’ former coach at UConn, Geno Auriemma. Now, Bueckers, the first overall pick of the Dallas Wings this year, and Fernández, who was officially introduced as the new head coach of the Wings, will join forces in the professional arena with the hope of bringing Dallas back into contention for the playoffs and, ultimately, competing for a championship. This will not be the same Dallas Wings, my brother. Change is coming, and we are going to win. The Wings have resurfaced strongly with Bueckers, whom Fernández called “one of the faces of the league”, now on the team.
Although Dallas finished in last place in 2025 with a 10-34 record, Bueckers dazzled as the team’s only All-Star, a second-team All-WNBA selection, and Rookie of the Year.
The Wings decided to dispense with first-year head coach Chris Koclanes in September and sought an experienced head coach who was a proven winner with sustained success. The franchise also looked for a new coach who was strong in player development, added General Manager Curt Miller, an “innovator” and, if possible, someone with international reach. The Wings have missed the playoffs the last two years and have only advanced past the first round in the postseason once since moving to Dallas from Tulsa in 2016. They have also experienced a lot of turnover, now on their fifth coach in seven years. But with the organization now on the rise, not only with Bueckers on the team, but with an imminent move from Arlington to Dallas and a new practice facility on the way, expectations have never been so high, both internally and externally. Dallas was one of the teams that offered former New York Liberty coach Sandy Brondello a head coaching job, before she ultimately decided to join the Toronto Tempo. Fernández was an attractive choice after turning USF into one of the most consistent and successful mid-major universities in the country, where he ran a pro-style offense with European influences, excelled at international recruiting, and produced dozens of players who went on to play in the WNBA or overseas.Paige is special. Great players want to be coached. She wants to be coached and held accountable. And I think the things we’re going to do in the half court and in the open field are going to suit her well. So I’m really excited to start working with her.
Fernández
While she will have the task of building around Bueckers, there is a lot of uncertainty with the rest of the team beyond that. A two-team expansion draft will be held after the new collective bargaining agreement is completed, and then all but two veterans in the league will move to free agency. Dallas also has the best odds of getting the number 1 pick in the next draft lottery. The Wings’ roster is young as it is: their only players under contract are Bueckers, 2025 draft classmates Aziaha James and JJ Quinerly, Maddy Siegrist and Diamond Miller, but Miller said the team will ultimately look to add veterans and more talent while preserving their culture. There will be tremendous collaboration in the decisions around the expansion draft, the decisions around free agency and, ultimately, the decisions we will discover at the end of this month, where we land in the draft,” Miller said.This job wasn’t for everyone. The scrutiny, the expectation that comes now with the job in Dallas is extremely high, and that scared people. And what I loved about [José is] that he wasn’t scared, in fact, it motivated José in our conversations.
Miller
